Plasma Physics research
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The Plasma Physics research programme is responsible for the design, execution and analysis of a wide range of high energy density physics (HEDP) experiments, both at facilities in the UK and abroad, and often in collaboration with researchers from other institutions.
A large part of the experimental programme is designed to provide data to underwrite the sophisticated radiation-hydrodynamics computer codes used at AWE, although there is also scope for innovative work in non-programmatic areas.
Some of the current research topics include:
- Material opacity
- Spall
- Hydrodynamic instabilities
- Laser-plasma interactions
- Short-pulse, high intensity laser-matter interactions
- Hohlraum physics
The experimental programme is supported by the use of multi-dimensional computer simulation codes. These tools, which are either developed at AWE or obtained from academic partners, guide the design of many of the experiments and are used extensively in the analysis of the data. Staff work closely with code developers to both validate the computer codes and help develop new physics packages for them.
HEDP experiments are typically short-lived (CPA experiments ~few picoseconds, hohlraum-driven experiments 0.1 to 20ns, Z-pinch experiments 10's to 100's ns). One of the challenges in working in this field is how to reliably record accurate data from an experiment. Staff at AWE are actively pursuing the development of optical- and X-ray imaging diagnostics, instruments to measure neutron yield as a function of time from fusion experiments, sensitive interferometers to measure surface motion, diagnostics to measure plasma temperature and various particle and X-ray spectrometers, amongst others.